Black Ships

by Jo Graham

[wyvernfriend]

Jo Graham takes Virgil's Aeneid and does a retelling of it from the point of view of the Pythia. She begins the story as Gull, a slave born of rape but still loved by her mother. When her ankle is broken she is apprenticed to the Pythia of the dark goddess Persephone, Lady of the dead, and she becomes Linnea before losing her name to her role when the previous priestess dies. She posesses a gift and burden of prophecy and is occasionally driven by the goddess to do things that she doesn't always understand at first but that make sense over time.

It's the story of the Wilusians or Trojans, the survival of a few and the recovery of some enslaved tribe members, adventures in the Middle East, Egypt and Italy and a hope for a future.

I found it an interesting read, it made me want to revisit the Aeneid. However I didn't find the characters all that compelling, there were moments where I engaged but the engagement slipped, still I was pulled through the tale and enjoyed the read.